Pegu Club Cocktail

Pegu Club Cocktail

The Spruce / Ali Redmond

Prep: 3 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 3 mins
Serving: 1 serving
Yield: 1 cocktail

A captivating gin sour, you can think of the Pegu Club Cocktail as gin's answer to the Daiquiri and Margarita. It dates back to the early 20th century, first mentioned in the 1930 "Savoy Cocktail Book," in which Harry Craddock credits the drink to the Pegu Club in Burma (Myanmar today). The drink traveled throughout the world and was a hit until sometime around World War II. After that, it fell out of favor a bit. Thanks to today's renewed interest in classic cocktails, it is regaining some of its old fame.

This is a great gin cocktail that does deserve the attention. You will find that it is best shaken until your hands get cold from frost. The orange liqueur is a matter of choice and can be Cointreau, curaçao, or triple sec. 

"I had the honor of working for the woman who's responsible for making this cocktail a popular classic. I learned so much from her and so much from this cocktail. This recipe is the standard. The Pegu Club cocktail is a phenomenal cocktail when made correctly. It is a perfect example of flavors in harmony." —Sean Johnson

Pegu Club Cocktail Tester Image
A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces gin

  • 3/4 ounce orange liqueur

  • 1/2 ounce lime juice

  • 2 dashes aromatic bitters

  • Lime wedge or twist, for garnish

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Pegu Club Cocktail ingredients

    The Spruce / Ali Redmond

  2. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

    Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice

    The Spruce / Ali Redmond

  3. Shake well.

    cocktail ingredients in a shaker

    The Spruce / Ali Redmond

  4. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

    Strain cocktail into a chilled cocktail glass

    The Spruce / Ali Redmond

  5. Garnish with a lime wedge or twist. Serve and enjoy.

    Pegu Club Cocktail

    The Spruce / Ali Redmond

Go Ahead, Play With Your Gin

We can consider ourselves lucky to be able to enjoy a Pegu Club Cocktail today. Whereas drinkers a century ago may have had just a few gin options, we have far too many gins to choose from. Plus, the array of flavor profiles is unlike anything they could have probably imagined.

This means that this is a cocktail that you will not get bored with. For example, you can choose a traditional, juniper-forward London dry gin and savor how the botanicals play off the sweet and sour background. On days when you'd like something a little more delicate, a softer gin like Aviation or Hendricks may be a better fit. Then again, the recipe can also stand up to the full flavor of any navy strength gin as well.

The Pegu Club is a versatile cocktail. It's also a nice one to have in your repertoire while discovering new gins. If you are sampling a new-to-you bottle and want to know how the gin works with citrus, this is the best cocktail for the test.

Granted, it won't work with every gin and you will like some combinations more than others. You will also find the need to tweak the ratio from time to time. Yet, uncovering that perfect match is half the fun of drinking. If the cocktail world was cut and dry, it would not be half as interesting as it is.

How Strong Is the Pegu Club?

It may look all neat and fancy, but like many similar cocktails, the Pegu Club is not a weak drink. This is particularly true if you pair an 80-proof gin with Cointreau or Grand Marnier (both of which are also 80-proof). In this case, the Pegu Club weighs in at around 29 percent ABV (58 proof). That puts it right up there with the booze-only Martini.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
221 Calories
0g Fat
14g Carbs
1g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 1
Amount per serving
Calories 221
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 2mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 14g 5%
Dietary Fiber 2g 7%
Total Sugars 7g
Protein 1g
Vitamin C 24mg 121%
Calcium 24mg 2%
Iron 0mg 2%
Potassium 88mg 2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)